2010-2011 Disclosure Acknowledgement: Fill & Download for Free

See this guy? His face might be familiar.That’s David Frum. He started publishing conservative screeds in Canada in the 1980s. As the son of one of our most respected journalists, Barbara Frum, he was in a privileged position to become a journalist, and walked into the role happily.Later, he moved to the USA and became a Republican. A serious Republican. He was a speech writer for George W Bush. He published a book about the Bush presidency. He serves on the board of the Republican Jewish Coalition. He’s an Associate Fellow on the R Street Institute, a conservative/Libertarian think tank in Washington. He was a paid Fellow of the neocon American Enterprise Institute. He was the foreign policy advisor to Rudy Giuliani’s presidential campaign.Can we all agree that this guy is a conservative? Good.Okay, so what good things do I have to say about Frum? Well, in about 2008 he started getting in trouble with the Republicans because he started calling them on their bullshit from the inside. This is when the Republican Party really started turning into the toxic stew that was hijacked by Trump and whose moral vacuity and white-male entitlement is on display in the Kavanaugh hearings today.The issue that made him break verbal ranks with the Republicans was their nuclear approach to the Affordable Health Care act. His 2010 post Waterloo was read over a million times. It pointed out that ACA was much more popular with Republican voters than any Republican leaders were admitting and he was highly critical of Fox and other right-wing media for being post-truth about the ACA.In other words, he was still in a fact-based world while the Republicans were starting to shift to their seriously post-modern take on reality.He lost paying positions, stopped being invited to the best parties full of jovial ex-frat boys who boofed and generally was treated as a pariah.In 2011, he continued on this path of being conservative — dragging his feet on changing circumstances — but still being able to reconcile himself to new realities and accept facts. How? By accepting gay marriage, stating clearly that he had been wrong 14 years earlier when he had been highly vocal in his opposition and that he was now a supporter of gay marriage. He agreed that the world wasn’t going to end and that marriage wouldn’t crumble, and that his concerns were unfounded.In other words, he continued to accept reality instead of railing against it.I still disagree with many of David Frum’s positions. His coining of the Bush-ism ‘axis of evil’ is in my opinion a particularly low point in his career. It was part of the propaganda effort that built support for the invasion of Iraq, something which continues to reap the predictable benefits of regional instability, human suffering and ongoing terrorism.But he is rightly highly critical of Trump and has asserted that he voted for Clinton in 2016, something sane and thoughtful Republicans did in that election. He continues to be a fact-based conservative, espouses conservative views which I find problematic but acknowledges a common reality as a starting point for divergence.I respect him as a conservative. I can’t say the same for the current Republicans in positions of power in the USA. And when I say that, I mean I can’t name a single Republican leader who I respect based on what I’ve seen. It’s possible I might respect some of their individual actions, but collectively and individually they have been enabling Trump and the post-truth world they inhabit for a decade.Frum isn’t in their bubble. That takes courage and intellectual resolve.Full disclosure: I very much doubt Frum remembers me but I was friends with a member of the extended family in the early 1990s, hung out at a couple of their houses, met Frum personally once at one of them and MCeed one of the weddings of the clan which he attended. I didn’t respect him then because he while obviously smart he was also obviously being intentionally shocking with his conservatism, not thoughtful. I also didn’t have his background and at the time had no ability to challenge him on his sophistry. He’s matured, and is a better man for it.

I loved many careers, especially the ones which loved me back.United States Marine, 1982–1990: loved it, but it had to come to an end.Welder’s Assistant, 1990: one-day job. Didn’t want to be idle while on terminal leave.Aircraft Refueler, 1990: enjoyed it.Aircraft Assembler - Structures and Surfaces, 1990–1994: it paid mode than the refueler job. And oh boy! I learned a new term: mandatory overtime. Who said that civilian work is all 9 to 5? It lasted me 3.5 years until the plant closed.Student - Electronics School, 1994–1995: did well until January of 1995.Cemetery Property Salesman, 1995: I was running out of unemployment and the basic electronics course I was taking wasn’t going anywhere. My father-in-law had just passed away, and I thought I knew what this job was all about. No one wanted to shake my hand; ended up hating it.Shuttle Driver, 1995–1996: too few hours, so I attended training and took a job as…Car Salesman, 1996: worst four months of my life!Computer Assembler, 1996: it was good until they ran out of parts.Electronics Assembler, 1996–1997: too many petty games.Stocker, 1997: fun, but only two days a week.Chemical Handler, 1997: I lacked the spirit for it.Demolition Man, 1997: fun, but just a one-day job.Warehouse Worker, 1997: good crew, but many games.Service Demonstration Host, 1997: fun, but short-lived.Electrical and Electronics Assembler - Turbomachinery, 1997–2003: great crew, but too many corporate games.Aircraft Maintenance Technician, 2003: I was too many years removed from my original experience. Didn’t work out.Caretaker, 2003: had a sick child.Prototype Assembler, 2004: that’s all I can say on account of a Non-Disclosure Agreement.Caretaker, 2004: same as 18 above.Composites Lay-Out Technician, 2004: another fine game by Milton Bradley.Cellular Telecommunications Technician, 2004: fun, but short project.Fabrication Assembler, 2004–2005: did many tasks, learned as I went, and my old aerospace experience helped.Appliance Repairman, 2005–2009: the customers were the best part, otherwise, we were the company’s bastard children, or so it seemed.Product Support (Biomedical) Technician - Field, 2009: Anal retentive and paranoid direct management, a dizzying three months.Computer Technician, 2010: this was a fun learning experience until they ran out of work.Field Technician, 2010–2011: the customers were the best part, with the learning experience a close second.Field Associate, 2011–2013: inducted temp-to-hire from the above. It was great until the C-Suite panicked when Obama won a second term. Most Field Associates, including myself, scrambled from there.Product Support (Biomedical) Technician - Depot, 2013–2014: same product as 25 above. This time it was fun without games, just work while there’s a contract, which was extended. Met great people there.Technical Services (Biomedical) Technician, 2014: covered for an employee on maternity leave. Oh, the hustle!PC/Network Support Technician, 2014–2015: really loved it! Great team, great environment, great client. Alas, it was only a short project.Refresh/Deployment Technician, 2015: just a a day-and-a-half job while unemployment kicked in.Biomedical Equipment Technician, 2015–2016: really busy, great experience, but lasted only a year.Computer Technician, 2016: two one-day jobs.Customer Engineer (?), 2016: don’t work for a temp agency run by South Asian Indians; they’re too quick to butcher job descriptions and break the law.Desktop Support Technician, 2016: why did I leave this job? Stupidity and $3/hr more.Product Support (Biomedical) Technician - Respiratory - Field 2016–2017: Same constipated people as 23 above, but different product. This was when my career search counselor suggested that I stick to either Information Technology or Biomedical, and quit switching between the two. Wise words. While at the career center, a speaker mentioned an information technology apprenticeship that paid for the first three CompTIA certification exams. I was there the next day! An arrangement was made with a staffing agency to locate me in a job upon passing the CompTIA Security+.Cable Tester, 2017: supplementing my income and doing my best to be out of the house. The people who built that ship messed up!Computer Technician - Installation, Move, Add, Configuration, and Disposal (IMACD), 2017: one-day job. Again, supplementing my unemployment pay and proving that I wanted to work.Computer Technician - IMAC, 2017: alas, these were only once-a-month office move gigs. So I kept looking for more work.Inventory Associate, 2017: retail is hard; inventory is harder.Desktop Support Technician - Data Migration… wait, Clerical?! 2017: This time, an American staffing agency misnomered the job! One week, but what a hot mess!Field Desktop Support Technician, 2017: a big name provider serving big name clients, but all they paid was $15/hr - that’s peanuts in California! But I needed a full-time job, so…Enterprise Service Desk Specialist - Marines, 2017–2018: Good news! I started a job that paid better than almost everything I had done in 2017. Bad news! It was 50~60 miles from my house! At least I was able to carpool.Information Technology Specialist, 2018: beats Service Desk any day! But it was short-lived.Enterprise Service Desk Specialist - Navy, 2018: lasted from June to October. So long and thanks for all the fish!Computer Operator, 2018 to present: great employer, and this position gives me room to execute future plans.So this is my career history in a nutshell. Did I take some jobs because I needed a job? Everyone needs a job! Did I pursue many jobs thinking I would love them? How can you love a job that doesn’t love you back? Remember, it’s an employee/employer relationship, nothing mercenary about it. Did I do what I loved then? No, I did what I do best, which is electromechanical. Electromechanical skills translate well to both Information Technology (IT) and Biomedical Equipment Technology (BMET). I’m multiskilled, but I lacked direction through most of my career history. Thanks to a wise man’s guidance, I acknowledged that biomedical is more of a vertical market that IT. I may have found direction late in the game, but I’m going to exploit it. Best yet, I start my second associate degree this Fall. This time is to become a systems administrator. Try and stop me!

Ugh. I've been in a similar situation - heck, I am in a similar situation.I think despite the very good and interesting advice here, there is nothing like the perspective of someone who's there - and has gotten repeatedly shut down.To some degree, some of the reception you have been getting is contingent on the industry you are in and the maturity of the companies that you are looking to contribute towards. In a start-up, it might be easier to tell a story that works for the listener; as companies become more mature, hiring managers and recruiters are less and less likely to understand or take the time to understand the true "out-of-the-box" or "creative" candidates. I've actually had someone say to me "we were looking for out-of-the-box candidates, and it'd be great to have dinner with you, your insights and ideas are spectacular and it's clear your technical knowledge is deep and experienced, but you're a little too out-of-the-box for us". In other words, I'm lovely and personable and articulate and interesting - but I shoulda just shaddup and nodded my head, instead of proposing off-the-cuff (but workable - if a bit ballsy) solutions to the challenges they faced. The irony is spectacular; many companies, no matter how innovative they profess to be, are in practice more like lemmings than "first followers" let alone "disruptive" or "innovators".I've witnessed, first-hand, situations where men who were competing with me for jobs got them, even though they'd been terminated from their last employ for "alleged" sexual harrassment. On the other hand, despite a stellar employment history, I've been called to task for pursuing alternative, legitimate, interests in other industries, or for personal committments (like caring for family), and gotten crap like: well, do you have any 1099's for that (small business ventures, day-trading, etc.)? We can't verify your history, so...No one likes dealing with stories that are difficult, or "have hair on them". Most recruiters, at least in the beginning of a search, look for reasons to say "no" - don't give them one. Feed them the story you want to tell. Get the offer. Then deal with any complications or what you feel might-be necessary disclosures. From the sounds of it, there's nothing you have to apologize for or disclose, unless you want to.So, take a lesson from Hollywood, politicians, and grandmothers, as well as from the other answers here:Never apologizeNever explainNever appear bitter or reveal conflictsBe kind; if you can't say something nice, don't say it at all.If you don't feel it bears directly on the role you're looking at, leave it off the resume and out of the discussionCall all other outside employment and business ventures "personal", unless you are willing to talk about them directly.If you are going to talk about other not-immediately relatable ventures, try to relate the experience to the role you are applying for, for instance, if you've been in an institutional sales capacity, say - I wanted to see what it was like for the small businessman (with respect to your "budget cafe") to identify markets and distribution channels - or something like that. Find themes and parallels. Figure out the "take" on your story and rehearse it; stick to it. Talk with your references and get them to support that story, or poke holes in it.When confronted with a question you are uncomfortable about, pivot just like a politician; acknowledge the question, pick a key word and expound to your advantage and knowledge base.One very senior executive told me, when I asked his advice regarding a difficult time, "we all have things like that on our resumes; times have been difficult, and it's not unusual, shameful, or anything to be uncomfortable about. Just say it didn't work out. And leave it at that". In other words, just stop talking.Know you want the job. And prepare specifically for THAT role. Do your homework, yada yada yada. The more customized, the more you network into your role, the more people you all know in common, the better - even if the story is complicated. Your network - from all your various experiences - is your ally; see how deep it goes here. If there's someone you had a bad experience with in the past, better suss out immediately whether or not that would be an issue in any role you are looking at, and move on.Finally, another very senior, very well-respected highly-regarded famous-in-their-industry and beyond gave me this simple advice: Persevere.